First off, I am no expert but I was interested in this line of knives for several reasons. This week, the folder was on sale for 24.95 and I thought it was worth the investment to find out for myself.
The knife seems well made and sturdy enough for normal use. The liner lock does have a barely perceptible give, just enough to make you aware it is not rock solid. Not a problem but just enough to be noticed. The blade opens and closes smoothly and there is no lateral play. The handle seems solid even with the blend of hard plastic and softer rubber like grip panels. The belt clip seems sufficient(but not reversible). The handle is wider than many folders but can still be pocket carried without problem.
The blade is 440A and being no knife expert, I can't see anything wrong with it on initial inspection and use. It was sharp enough to cut paper and shave hair out of the clamshell, but I hit a few strokes on a ceramic rod and it seemed to shave a hair better(pun intended).
I did some simple whittling and it cut well but was not put to any real test. Time will tell how it retains an edge or how well it resharpens.
The built in fire starter fits well into the handle of the knife but the handle of the starter itself does not seem like it is that sturdy and I question how well seated the rod itself is in the small firestarter handle and how long it will stay put .
The first problem is the coating on the firestarter has to be removed before it will make any sparks. The next issue is that the blade coating(the 'carbonitride titanium' I guess?) makes it virtually impossible to get a spark from the rod! There appears to be a small half round cut out on the top of the blade near the handle made specifically for use with the firestarter....I have yet to get any spark using that feature. I have gotten minimal sparks from other areas of the top of the blade but the rod produces ample sparks using a tramontina bolo, mora 2000 and even a LM Squirt PS4 that were handy for the test! I have no doubt the coating on the folder blade is the problem!
I wanted to test the knife mainly to see the Camillus quality and to see what kind of product Les Stroud would give his name to since there are definite favorites between Stroud and Bear Grylls and his line of Gerber knives. I honestly felt a little self conscious buying the knife because of the obvious connection of marketing the "survival" mentality and the celebrity name.
Initially, the knife appears to be sufficiently well made and adequate at the price I paid butI'm not sure it is worth the regular $29.95 -or more price. I have it now and will use it but it is definitely not on the same level as my other knives of that price range (e.g. Ontario RAT 1, KaBar Dozier folder, Byrd Meadowlark).
My 16 year old son may take it on a couple of Boy Scout campouts and I will see what he thinks of it , but these are my initial thoughts.
Thanks for reading.
The knife seems well made and sturdy enough for normal use. The liner lock does have a barely perceptible give, just enough to make you aware it is not rock solid. Not a problem but just enough to be noticed. The blade opens and closes smoothly and there is no lateral play. The handle seems solid even with the blend of hard plastic and softer rubber like grip panels. The belt clip seems sufficient(but not reversible). The handle is wider than many folders but can still be pocket carried without problem.
The blade is 440A and being no knife expert, I can't see anything wrong with it on initial inspection and use. It was sharp enough to cut paper and shave hair out of the clamshell, but I hit a few strokes on a ceramic rod and it seemed to shave a hair better(pun intended).
I did some simple whittling and it cut well but was not put to any real test. Time will tell how it retains an edge or how well it resharpens.
The built in fire starter fits well into the handle of the knife but the handle of the starter itself does not seem like it is that sturdy and I question how well seated the rod itself is in the small firestarter handle and how long it will stay put .
The first problem is the coating on the firestarter has to be removed before it will make any sparks. The next issue is that the blade coating(the 'carbonitride titanium' I guess?) makes it virtually impossible to get a spark from the rod! There appears to be a small half round cut out on the top of the blade near the handle made specifically for use with the firestarter....I have yet to get any spark using that feature. I have gotten minimal sparks from other areas of the top of the blade but the rod produces ample sparks using a tramontina bolo, mora 2000 and even a LM Squirt PS4 that were handy for the test! I have no doubt the coating on the folder blade is the problem!
I wanted to test the knife mainly to see the Camillus quality and to see what kind of product Les Stroud would give his name to since there are definite favorites between Stroud and Bear Grylls and his line of Gerber knives. I honestly felt a little self conscious buying the knife because of the obvious connection of marketing the "survival" mentality and the celebrity name.
Initially, the knife appears to be sufficiently well made and adequate at the price I paid butI'm not sure it is worth the regular $29.95 -or more price. I have it now and will use it but it is definitely not on the same level as my other knives of that price range (e.g. Ontario RAT 1, KaBar Dozier folder, Byrd Meadowlark).
My 16 year old son may take it on a couple of Boy Scout campouts and I will see what he thinks of it , but these are my initial thoughts.
Thanks for reading.